$900 Rotary Shelter Boxes being delivered to Pakistan Earthquake victims, Oct. 2005

A Rotary Shelter Box Costs:-
Box (for water purification) & small contents = $75 + Ten person tent = $325 + 10 Sleeping Bags = $400 + Multifuel Cooker = $100
Total Shelter Box Cost = US$900
To sponsor a Rotary Shelter Box, e.mail us at Club@EastHamptonRotary.us

Rotary International

Disaster Relief Efforts:

Rotary is working with Clubs affected by RECENT DISASTERS (Click for details) in Pakistan, Guatemala, Niger and the U.S. Gulf Coast.

For example, immediately after Hurricane Katrina, Rotary Clubs sent 1,000 Shelter Boxes, each of which includes a tent and living facilities for 10 people. Rotary (GB and Ireland) also sent a team of experienced volunteers to supervise distribution and use of the Shelter Boxes.

Polio Plus:

In 1985, Rotary launched the PolioPlus PROGRAM (Click for details) to protect children worldwide from the cruel and fatal consequences of polio. In 1988, the World Health Assembly took up the challenge to eradicate polioworld-wide. Rotary's efforts and those of partner agencies, including the WHO, the United Nations Children's Fund, the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and governments around the world, have achieved a 99 percent reduction in the number of polio cases worldwide.

The Shelter Box Trust:

The Rotary Club of Helston, Cornwall, England, devised a Shelter Box kit for use in any disaster anywhere in the world. The SHELTERBOX project  (Click for details) is now world-wide, administered through the Rotary Club of Helston-Lizard and in the USA by The Lakewood Ranch Rotary Club together with new partner clubs in Australia and Canada. It is distributed through Aid Agencies and Rotary Clubs closest to the disaster areas. Most of the funding comes as donations from Rotary Clubs around the world, as well as other organisations and individuals who have given great support to the project. But continuity is the key for the future and funding is constantly being sought.

Rotary Foundation:

'The Rotary Foundation' (Click for details) is a not-for-profit charitable corporation financed by donations from Rotary Clubs. It supports the efforts of Rotary International to achieve world understanding and peace through international humanitarian, educational, and cultural exchange programs. It is supported solely by voluntary contributions from Rotarians and friends of the Foundation who share its vision of a better world.

The Foundation was created in 1917 by Rotary International's sixth president, Arch C. Klumph, as an endowment fund for Rotary "to do good in the world." It has grown from an initial contribution of US$26.50 to more than US$117.9 million contributed in 2004-05. Its event-filled history is a story of Rotarians learning the value of service to humanity.

The Foundation's Humanitarian Programs fund international Rotary club and district projects to improve the quality of life, providing health care, clean water, food, education, and other essential needs primarily in the developing world. One of the major Humanitarian Programs is PolioPlus, which seeks to eradicate the poliovirus worldwide. Through its Educational Programs, the Foundation provides funding for some 1,200 students to study abroad each year. Grants are also awarded to university teachers to teach in developing countries and for exchanges of business and professional people. Former participants in the Foundation's programs have the opportunity to continue their affiliation with Rotary as Foundation Alumni.

For more information on current Foundation program awards and financial status see the Rotary Foundation Fact Card and the Rotary Foundation Annual Report, both of which are available for download.

'Foundation' offers a huge range of projects and programs including:

Humanitarian Programs......3-H (Health, Hunger & Humanity) Grants, Mercy Ships, Matching Grants, Blane Community Immunization Grants and much more.

Educational Programs.... funding for students, faculty and young professionals to study abroad, Group Study Exchange and International Peace Scholarships at seven Universities around the world.